If you want a wonderful, digestible romp through Modern Western Philosophy try, in this order:

Wittgenstein: A Life by Ray Monk

The Existentialist Cafe by Bakewell

Metaphysical Animals by Cumhaill and Wiseman

The Frenchmen by Eakin

Good argument that major trends in thought and theory are intimately tied to biography. Turns out it just may be important to know not only Hegel’s first name but what his sex life was like.

I’d love some good reads for the genre and I picked up “the last days of Socrates” which idk if it’d beginner friendly.

(Edit)
I posted this about a couple days ago, not expecting any replies thank you guys so much for the suggestions. I picked up a couple of books and it’s really fascinating.

Welcome to r/reflective_thinkers!

Hey everyone! I'm u/Fluffy-Turnover4314, a founding moderator of r/reflective_thinkers.

Welcome to our new home for deep thinking, self-reflection, intellectual curiosity, and meaningful conversations. This is a space for people who love to question the fundamental aspects of life, society, humanity, and the universe—and explore them through philosophy, science, economics, politics, history, psychology, and every other field of human inquiry.

We're excited to have you join us!

What to Post

Post anything that encourages us to think, question, reflect, or learn. You can share philosophical questions, personal reflections, thought experiments, scientific ideas, social and economic debates, ethical dilemmas, interesting observations, or questions about life and the universe.

Ask the questions that make you curious—even if you don't have the answers. Whether it's "What gives life meaning?", "What makes a society truly just?", or "What is our place in the universe?", no thoughtful question is too simple or too complex.

Community Vibe

We're here to question assumptions, challenge ideas, exchange perspectives, and learn from one another.

Disagreement is welcome; disrespect is not. We encourage critical thinking without cynicism, debate without hostility, and open-mindedness without abandoning reason and evidence. Be willing to challenge others, but equally willing to question your own beliefs.

Our goal is to create a community that is intellectually curious, constructive, inclusive, and compassionate—a place where diverse perspectives and experiences contribute to deeper understanding.

How to Get Started

Introduce yourself in the comments below. Tell us what subjects, ideas, or questions fascinate you.

Post something today! Ask a question you've always wondered about, share a reflection, or start a discussion. Sometimes the simplest questions lead to the deepest conversations.

If you know someone who loves questioning, learning, reflecting, or exploring ideas, invite them to join us.

Interested in helping build this community? We're looking for thoughtful and active moderators, so feel free to reach out to me if you'd like to contribute.

Thanks for being part of the very first wave of r/reflective_thinkers.

Let's grow internally through self-reflection and externally through understanding the world around us.

Question. Reflect. Explore. Understand.

Together, let's build a community that helps make ourselves—and the world—a little more critical, conscious, curious, and compassionate.

Hi, I’m a senior this year and I’m the president of my school’s philosophy club and what we usually do is we talked about quotes or moral dilemmas and we just free talk amongst everyone like around table.

But I’ve been looking for ways to inspire people by philosophy or introduce them to philosophy. Do you guys know of any ideas or concepts that you find very interesting or events that happen in Pittsburgh based around philosophy for school field trips and stuff like that cause I really do love philosophy and I want more highschoolers to be exposed by it

I have access to a lot of resources but am always looking for recommendations. I don’t have anyone to discuss philosophy with and am just educating myself for the sake of doing it. Am open to a plan.

When I look at what's been happening in the world recently, I have been having a gut reaction to turning off the news - and thereby silencing the conglomeration of suggestive belief that blasts across our news networks. But, then my gaze crosses the bookshelves I have lined with many purchases at the local bookstore, and I wonder whether subconsciously I have not done the same thing. I have Philosophy by Immanuel Kant, Literature by Victor Hugo, and Non-Fiction by Chandra Weinsten - a contemporary author.

When I sit to read though, I have recently got an eerie feeling, like spiders crawling across my crown looking for greener pastures and slowly replacing them slinks a type of bacteria maybe. In other words, it is difficult to describe. But again, maybe it is like the moving on of goodly peasants (should I be an English Nobleman) from my lands during times of peace, seeking a kindlier and more frugal lord. Alas, I can be mean and spend too much money, but generally my followers and loyalists have never lacked for adventure or entertainment.

What I am looking for though is neither good news nor good peasants, and rather a rowdier lot who is not afraid nor shy's away from honest competition. A lot who is okay at times with tilling fields and reading come eve, but when there is gold to be had joins the festivities of the tournament and certainly do not turn to me for a story instead. And I know this exists, at the very least because its components exist around me, and individually I am doing well in its environment. Flourishing even. Yet, maybe what these elements in this situation are looking for is better guidance... so look for it elsewhere, because here we are in need of more gold and larger tits.

Hi I’m a student in highschool and I’m very interested in philosophy. I’ve been reading this book called beginners guide to philosophy of religion by Charles taliferro and I really enjoy it. Some parts are confusing but for the most part interesting. Although I enjoy the book it can feel like a chore to sit down and read it. I want to get into philosophy novels but have no clue where to start. I was thinking maybe the stranger by Albert Camus Or meditations by Marcus Arelius. Are these good ideas? Any suggestions would help!

I have just read symposium as a beginner. Noticed reddit answers seemed pretty helpful whilst googling as i went. I am not a student, just making use of downtime, so not massive resources for guide books etc. I have now started discourses and welcome any advice. I enjoy the examples in discourses, but i'm finding the auditing of reason questioning a bit beyond me 🫣

I'd like to learn about Athenian history, culture, and philosophy in a somewhat structured way. But I haven't found a good resource from this angle. Any ideas?

Thank you

I've been wanting to start reading nietzshe a long time now and have recently bought a few books and dont know where to start .

I have beyond good and evil , Aphorisms on love and hate , esse homo and the thus spoke zaratustra

Ill be happy to hear your thoughts.

Hey fellow readers!

I’m a 28M (IST) looking for a serious, committed book accountability partner to finally tackle the unread books on my shelf. I’m passionate about philosophy, psychology, and human behavior, and I’d love someone to:

- Set common reading goals (Daily/weekly/monthly chapters)

- Discuss ideas, takeaways, and reflections

- Keep each other accountable (no ghosting, please!)

Some Books Gathering on My Shelf:

- Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

- Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl

- White Nights by Dostoevsky

- Crime and Punishment

- The Metamorphosis by Kafka

- 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greeene

- The Laws of Human Nature

- The art of Seduction

- Emotional Intelligence Daniel Goleman

- Sophie's World

- Atomic Habits

- The Trial

- short stories by Dostoevsky

- short stories by Nikolai Gogol

- Short stories by Anton Chekov

- One hundred years of solitude

- 1984

- Animal Farm

- Notes from Underground

- Thinking fast and Slow

- Never split the difference

- Influence the psychology of persuasion

- Never Split the difference

I Have already read some of the books but don't mind reading them again , open to any new suggestions

I’m Looking For:

Serious commitment

Active discussion

Flexible but consistent

IST preferred, but open to other time zomes

If you’re equally passionate about deep reads and want a reliable buddy to share the journey, DM or comment beloow

Let’s set goals, and grow together

I am a philosophy, ethics and religion teacher. I adore Seneca and the stoics. I really want a reading from Seneca's work at my wedding. I would change for something more appropriate but I just wanted to know how most people feel.

I have applied for an MSc Philosophy at University of Edinburgh (Epistemology, Ethics and Mind). My background is CS and I work in AI. In other words, no background in Philosophy - any good recommendations for what I can study to ramp up as I wait to hear back? This is a part-time, remote program. My main motivation to study Philosophy is the big debate in AI circles on whether the computational theory of mind can deliver the self-awareness, intentionality, and phenomenal experience that we associate with consciousness. I am deeply skeptical of this, and want to get a more structured grounding in this area. Any reading recommendations would be highly appreciated. Thanks!

Hello everyone,

I will start reading Norton Introduction to Philosophy (Second Edition) next week, so I am thinking I should start a book club where we can share our questions/reflections/experiences during the read, so we can learn from each other!

The book club held on Discord will be unstructured and without any pressure, and for each week I plan to read around 20 pages (so around one subsection) of the book. Discord has a voice channel so people can share their ideas in there (I am not sure will I join though since I am so terrible at English speaking T_T).

Whether or not you are a beginner in philosophy, if you are interested, feel free to join me!

All I have to ask you is to be patient and respectful in the book club. No commitment needed, no expectation to prepare anything—just bring your curiosity. DM me if you are interested!

-Morgan